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Florida · Tampa Bay
Cigar City history, Cuban sandwiches and an aquarium beside the ships.
Ybor City, Tampa's Latin Quarter, once rolled cigars for the world and gave the city its Cuban sandwich. The Florida Aquarium is next to the cruise terminals, and the Riverwalk follows the river through downtown.
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See Aquarium
Channel District
Habitats include Wetlands of Florida, Coral Reefs and Stingray Beach, at 701 Channelside Drive. It opens 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and until 6 p.m. in June and July.
Plan Your Aquarium Visit (opens a new tab)Unwind Riverfront
Downtown
The Riverwalk runs 2.6 miles along the Hillsborough River through downtown. Port Tampa Bay points to its views and the restaurants and nightlife close by.
See the Riverwalk (opens a new tab)Taste Cuban Sandwich
Ybor City
Tampa's Cuban stacks roast pork, ham, Swiss cheese, pickles and mustard, plus Genoa salami, the Italian addition. It began in Ybor City in the early 1900s as lunch for the cigar workers.
Find a Cuban Sandwich (opens a new tab)Explore Streetcar
Port Tampa Bay station
The free streetcar links the cruise terminals with Ybor City and Water Street, 11 stations in about 25 minutes end to end. Cars run every 15 minutes.
See the Streetcar Map (opens a new tab)Skip the excursion desk
Port Tampa Bay has three cruise terminals, 2, 3 and 6, close together in the Channel District.
| Cruise line | Ships | Terminal |
|---|---|---|
| Royal Caribbean International | Enchantment of the Seas | Terminal 2 |
| Royal Caribbean International | Jewel of the Seas, Radiance of the Seas | Terminal 2 (Terminal 3 on some calls) |
| Carnival Cruise Line | All ships | Terminal 3 |
| Margaritaville at Sea | All ships | Terminal 6 |
| Celebrity Cruises | All ships | Terminal 6 |
| Norwegian Cruise Line | All ships | Terminal 6 (Terminal 3 on some calls) |
Terminals can change; your boarding pass shows yours. Source: Port Tampa Bay cruise schedule, calls from 22 October 2026 to 30 September 2027.
Every ship docks in the Channel District, so the route is the same from all three terminals.
Tampa International Airport is 9.5 miles from the cruise port; the port calls it a 15-minute drive.
The port's cruise garage is the Channelside Parking Garage at 810 Channelside Drive, across from Terminal 3; a second lot is at 1331 McKay Street. Prepay online by cruise line. The port page lists no daily rate. Valet is a $20 upgrade.
If you do one thing here
Ybor City rolled its first cigar on April 13, 1886, and by 1900 it was the cigar capital of the world. More than 200 factories rose across the region, and at its peak the industry made more than 500 million cigars a year.
Ybor City is one of only three National Historic Landmark Districts in Florida. Ybor City Museum State Park, in the old Ferlita Bakery, traces the cigar trade (Wednesday to Sunday, $4). Shops on 7th Avenue still roll cigars by hand.
Ybor City Museum State Park (opens a new tab)Cigar City History (opens a new tab)
Recorded violent crime in Tampa is well above the Florida rate per resident, and property crime is a little above.
Crime figures: FBI Crime Data Explorer, 2024, Tampa Police Department and Florida reporting agencies, per resident; our sums. Distances: straight line from OpenStreetMap coordinates, our maths. Weather: NWS 1991–2020 normals at Tampa International Airport.
Make it part of your voyage
Carnival, Royal Caribbean, Celebrity, Norwegian and Margaritaville at Sea sail from Port Tampa Bay.
At Port Tampa Bay's three cruise terminals in the Channel District: Terminal 2 at 651 Channelside Drive, Terminal 3 at 815 Channelside Drive and Terminal 6 at 1333 McKay Street.
Carnival, Royal Caribbean, Celebrity, Norwegian and Margaritaville at Sea.
Port Tampa Bay publishes a cruise calendar that lists each ship and its terminal. It warns that terminals and departure times can change, so confirm with your cruise line.
The airport lists a $40 Yellow Cab flat rate to downtown Tampa and the cruise terminal, 9.5 miles away. Uber and Lyft pick up at the Red and Blue Express Curbsides, with a $5 airport fee.
Up to $3.50 to start, then $2.85 a mile and $0.40 a minute of waiting. A $6.50 surcharge applies when you leave from an airport or seaport.
The port's page shows no daily rate; prepay online for the price. The Channelside Parking Garage is across from Terminal 3, and a valet upgrade costs $20.
Not in the terminals. The Florida Aquarium, next to Terminal 2, stores luggage free with a discounted admission ticket.
The free TECO Line Streetcar runs from Port Tampa Bay station along Channelside Drive to Water Street and Franklin Street, and north to Ybor City. Taxis use the county meter.
Tampa's 2024 violent crime rate was 72% above Florida's, and its property crime rate 17% above. The figures cover the whole city, not the port area.
Cigars. Ybor City rolled its first cigar in 1886 and was the cigar capital of the world by 1900. It is one of three National Historic Landmark Districts in Florida.
The Florida Aquarium and Sparkman Wharf are by the terminals. The port also names Water Street, the Riverwalk and Ybor City, and Busch Gardens, Clearwater and St. Pete Beach farther out.
June 1 to November 30, with most activity between mid-August and mid-October.
